This invention generally relates to the art of electrical connectors and, particularly, to an electrical connector assembly which includes a separate terminal tail aligning device.
A known type of input/output (I/O) electrical connector includes an elongated dielectric housing having a front mating face and a rear face, with a plurality of terminal-receiving passages extending therebetween. A plurality of terminals are received in the passages. Each terminal includes a forwardly projecting contact portion and a rear portion projecting rearwardly of the housing beyond the rear face thereof. Often, the connector is a right angle I/O connector, with the housing having a bottom board mounting face. The terminals have tail portions extending at an angle to the contact portions and the rearwardly projecting portions, for soldering to conductive circuit traces on a printed circuit board. In order to maintain the exact position of the terminal tails prior to mounting the connector on the printed circuit board and to generally protect the tails, tail aligners typically are used in connection with such connectors. These tail aligners generally have a plurality of rows of holes through which the tails of the terminals extend. The tail aligner may be integral with the connector housing, but many connectors include some type of means for securing a separate tail aligner to the connector housing.
Problems still continue to plague such connectors which are mounted on printed circuit boards and which use tail aligners to facilitate soldering the tails to the circuit traces on the printed circuit board. One of the problems is to dissipate the heat generated during the soldering process. In particular, when the terminal pins are inserted into holes in the printed circuit board, a pin-in-hole reflow (PIHR) soldering process is used which generates considerable heat. Tail aligners and connector structures of the prior art, particularly where the tail aligner is mounted directly to the connector housing, do not allow for sufficient air flow to dissipate the heat during the PIHR soldering process. The heat can become so severe that the connector components, typically fabricated of plastic material, can melt or at least deform. The present invention is directed to solving these problems by providing a connector assembly with a tail aligner which is free and spaced from the connector housing, in conjunction with a ventilating cover or bracket for securing the tail aligner to the housing.
An object, therefore, of the invention is to provide a new and improved electrical connector assembly for mounting on a printed circuit board and which includes a terminal tail aligning device.
In the exemplary embodiment of the invention, the connector assembly includes a dielectric housing having a front mating face, a rear face and a board mounting face. A plurality of terminals are mounted on the housing and include contact portions extending toward the mating face of the housing, rear portions projecting from the rear face and tail portions extending at an angle to the contact portions past the board mounting face of the housing. A tail aligning device has a plurality of apertures through which the tail portions of the terminals extend. The tail aligning device is press-fit onto the tail portions and is free of the housing and spaced rearwardly of the rear face thereof. A cover at least partially encloses the rear face of the housing and the rear portions of the terminals. Complementary interengaging securing means are provided between the cover and the housing to hold the cover on the housing. Complementary interengaging latch means are provided between the cover and the tail aligning device to hold the tail aligning device to the cover.
According to one aspect of the invention, the tail aligning device is located on the tail portions of the terminals above the board mounting face of the housing and, therefore, above the printed circuit board. This allows for air to flow completely around the tail aligning device which is free and spaced from the housing. The cover is a ventilating device and is perforated to allow the passage of air therethrough.
According to another aspect of the invention, the cover is generally U-shaped in an inverted orientation to define a top bridge portion and depending leg portions at opposite ends of the bridge portion. The cover includes holes in the bridge portion and in the leg portions to allow the passage of air therethrough. The complementary interengaging latch means are between the leg portions of the cover and opposite ends of the tail aligning device. The complementary interengaging securing means include interengaging securing components between the bridge portion of the cover and the housing. In addition, securing components are provided between the leg portions of the cover and the housing, in the form of interengaging rib-and-groove means for slidably mounting the cover onto the housing. The rib-and-groove means include a detent latch boss in a groove engageable with a detent latch shoulder on a rib of the housing.
Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.